Major League Soccer will conduct its first Player Draft Feb. 6-7 in the Astor Room at the Inter-Continental Hotel (111 E. 48th Street) in New York.
The draft will start at 1:00 pm ET Feb. 16.
The teams will pick players signed by MLS over 16 rounds.
By draft day, MLS hopes to have about 200 players under contract, in addition to the 30-40 players who will have been allocated to teams.
No announcement has been made on the order of the draft, but the strength of a team’s allocated players may be taken into account. MLS is also contemplating having teams pick “territorial options” beginning in the third round.
A college draft will be held in early March, with teams expected to pick in reverse order from their order in the Player Draft.
A supplemental draft may be added for players seen at a second, smaller player combine in March.
Teams may later have the right to sign “discovery players,” if an agreement can be reached on the signing of players not previously showcased.
Spring training will not begin before March 1. Teams will gather in Florida and California for combined training camps.
The first MLS game is Washington at San Jose April 6.
For more information on the draft, contact MLS at 310 772-2600.